The ICC CHAMPIONS TROPHY popularly known by many as the ‘Mini World Cup’ is the 2nd biggest trophy (in terms of importance) in cricket, only second to the ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP. The tournament was inaugurated way back in 1998 as the ICC Knock Out –Trophy and has been played approximately every two years since then, although in the previous 2 occasions it took place after the gap  of 3-4 years. The name (ICC Knock Out Trophy) was changed to the ICC Champions Trophy in 2002.

The number of teams competing for this prestigious Mini World Cup has varied over the years; originally all the ICC’s  full members took part, and from 2000 to 2004 associate members were also involved. Since 2009, the tournament has only involved the eight highest-ranked ODI teams in the ICC ODI rankings.

 

 

FORMAT :-

The format used in the ICC Champions Trophy has differed over the years. In the first 2 editions (1998 and 2000) the competition was a straight knock out, with no pools/groups and the loser in each game being eliminated. Only 8 games were played in 1998 edition, and 10 games in the 2000 edition. For 2002 and 2004 editions, twelve teams played a round-robin tournament in four pools of three, with the top team in each pool moving forward to the semi-final. In 2006, eight teams played in two pools of four, with the top two teams in each pool playing in the semi-finals. Losing even a single match would potentially mean elimination from the tournament. For 2009 and 2013 editions, eight highest-ranked ODI teams in the ICC ODI rankings competed for the trophy. Each team played every other team in its group once. Points were allocated for each match. Following the group stage, the top two teams from each group progressed to the semi-finals, The winners of the semi-finals contested in the the final.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY :-

              YEAR                                                     HOST                                           WINNER
ICC Knock Out Trophy 1998                      BANGLADESH                               SOUTH AFRICA
ICC Knock Out Trophy 2000                           KENYA                                       NEW ZEALAND
ICC Champions Trophy 2002                      SRI LANKA                                  IND/SL(Co-Winner)
ICC Champions Trophy 2004                      ENGLAND                                      WEST INDIES
ICC Champions Trophy 2006                          INDIA                                          AUSTRALIA
ICC Champions Trophy 2009                  SOUTH AFRICA                                   AUSTRALIA
ICC Champions Trophy 2013                      ENGLAND                                           INDIA

 

 

TOP 8 TEAMS PERFORMANCES :-

 TEAMS                                              BEST RESULT                                           WIN %
India                                        Champions (2002,* 2013)                                  71.42
Australia                                  Champions (2006, 2009)                                    63.15
New Zealand                           Champions (2000)                                              60.00
Sri Lanka                                  Champions (2002)*                                            59.09
West Indies                              Champions (2004)                                               56.25
South Africa                             Champions (1998)                                               54.76
England                                     Runners-Up (2004, 2013)                                   52.38
Pakistan                                    Semi-Finals (2000, 2004, 2009)                          38.88

 

 

LEADING WICKET TAKERS :-

Player                                    Matches                      Wickets                 Average

Kyle Mills                                    15                                28                           17.25
Muttiah Muralitharan               17                                24                            20.17
Lasith Malinga                           13                                22                            26.68
Brett Lee                                    16                                22                            26.86
Glenn McGrath                          12                                21                            19.61

 

 

HIGHEST RUN SCORERS :-

Player                                       Matches                  Innings               Runs               Highest Score            Average
Chris Gayle                                  17                                17                      791                      133*                        52.73
Mahela Jayawardene                  22                                21                     742                        84*                         41.22
Kumar Sangakkara                      22                                21                     683                      134*                        37.94
Sourav Ganguly                           13                                11                     665                       141*                       73.88
Jacques Kallis                               17                                17                     653                       113*                       46.64

 

 

The upcoming ICC Champions Trophy which is scheduled to be played in England & wales from (1-18 June 2017) will have the same format as it was in last (2013) edition. Bangladesh will play their first ever Champions Trophy as a Top 8 ranked team in ICC ODI Rankings. On the other hand team West Indies for the very first time will not be able to take participate in the Champions Trophy because at the time of cut-off date (30th September 2015), West Indies were not in the Top 8 in the ICC ODI Rankings.